Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of (a) annually uprating the Bereavement Support Payment in line with inflation and (b) extending the payment period for the Bereavement Support Payment beyond 18 months.

The level of Bereavement Support Pay (BSP) is reviewed annually as part of the uprating process, and Government keeps wider bereavement support under review to ensure it remains effective and sustainable. BSP was designed to provide support during the immediate period following a bereavement, rather than replace income over the longer term.